Things fall apart
26/03/2004 10:18 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
izmeinaFirst things first - a fascinating snippet from the wonderful folks at the Dumbledore Appreciation Society
One particular python might be most pleased to see it.
As for Iz, been having a crappy day slaving over a hot abacus and having to log out three times because the silly computer would just freeze. Finally got so peeved and moved to another computer.
Iz turns up at the Min today to see a sign saying that the labs would be closed from 5pm to midnight for network maintenance. Just what we needed to hear. Friday evening is the big Izzie typing and pottering session and that's when they decide to close. But there is the alternative of the Abacus labs where I am right now. But Iz hates them. Nasty places. Firstly -you need to swipe your ID card every time you come and go - through two doors each time compared to none at the usual Izzie lurking grounds. Secondly they run from a different network and as Izzie has no floppies handy or those flash new cigarette lighter USB thingies - need to resort to sending files as emails or the old reliable - private posts in LJ. But that of course is useless for tables and graphs. But what Iz really really hates is there are no toilets and Iz is just dying for a pee. But once I leave this place - could not be bothered coming back again.
But what is annoying the hell out of ickle Iz is the evil auditing assignments. Nasty stinking things. Last week our tutor says that some one else would be taking the class because she would be away in Singapore or something. But she adds - that does not mean that your work won't be collected.
Well - yet again another sunny Thursday afternoon got wasted typing stupid questionses. At least this time got finished by 3pm so had time to potter in Cyberia and have a coffee and catch up with the papers.
Her replacement lecturer was so boring that I used the lecture time to write those silly chapter summaries for Friday - another evil random collection subject.
We then went walking half way across the Min to get to our tutorial only to see the place cordoned off and the fire brigade there. They had been there for 3 hours or so. Classes in those rooms had been cancelled but no one was organized enough to inform the lecturers so that they could tell us where to go instead.
Most amusing - there was supposed to be three auditing tutorials in that building but only one tutor turned up. I guess the other two heard about it earlier and just slinked off into the darkness. So she was very nice and found another room and let all us stragglers join her class.
But that meant of course that our assignments were yet again NOT going to be collected. She gave back hers to the class from the previous week.
So that now leaves us with 8 weeks of question and the probability of collection increasing with every week.
Got back the thingie from Friday's class that I had to rush off in 30 minutes because of wasting all that time on the auditing stuff. Got 6/10 Pretty damn good return on investment for about 90 mins work in all. Worst thing was - took time from that to do the other stuff that I got zilch marks for because once again it never got collected.
Class finished at 9pm on Thursday and we decided to do some of the group assignment. The woman Izzie is working with likes to work in the Abacus lab because it is right next to the bus stops. I'd suggested last week that we each come up with our own list of ten dodgiest things about Big Chef Ltd which is the imaginary company for this case study assignment.
She had pages and pages of stuff - all typed - she even types up her notes for subjects too! Iz felt totally inadequate - thinking of my one page of big red squiggles that certainly were not typed. But Iz kept asking what 10 risk factors she had come up with - wanted to see how we compared but she never would answer that question.
But what is most worrying - I say - before we go any further - the best thing to do is decide what each of us has to have done for next week so we can compare results. "Oh I don't work that way" she says.
Oh no..here we go again thinks Iz. So we ended up farting around in the lab until 11.30 pm (Yesss..Izzie's precious online pottering time) and have bugger all to show for it. Iz still does not know what she thinks the biggest risks are and she didn't seem interested in the Izzie opinion on the matter.
March 31 is the last day this semester to dump subjects and Iz gets the impression that she may want out. We have already lost several people from our tutorial and one of them was in the Izzie group for the assignment. There is supposed to be 3-4 people per group and so far we are down to two.
Just one lecture was enough last term to scare off Iz. But it's got to be done some time and Iz knows a good teacher when she sees one and have definitely hit the jackpot with this one.
The ma told Iz that she is going out Saturday evening. So Iz will be lurking here at the Min instead. So no chats with cats this week:(
Vernon was whingeing about Iz being up so late last Saturday. What's it to him? He just cannot bear the thought that some one some where could possibly be enjoying themselves.
But there is one consolation - got 2 of the four nasty questionses finished already and may just manage this week to be munching sushi on Thursday instead of stuck in front of a keyboard typing assignments that will never be collected.
Was so peeved that I didn't even bother going to the Izzie Friday morning gossip group. But it's not like I did anything instead. Got up at 10am instead of 5.30 am and basically wasted the time snoozing that was theoretically supposed to be spent finishing Friday's questions. Lucky she didnt' decide to be utterly evil and collect two weeks in a row.
All it did was make poor Iz confused and even more irritable. Not a good idea upsetting routines and rituals for silly reasons.
So now it's time to slink off to the lair and have a glass of red with my most precioussss and ever so faithful pet rat Wormtail!
One particular python might be most pleased to see it.
As for Iz, been having a crappy day slaving over a hot abacus and having to log out three times because the silly computer would just freeze. Finally got so peeved and moved to another computer.
Iz turns up at the Min today to see a sign saying that the labs would be closed from 5pm to midnight for network maintenance. Just what we needed to hear. Friday evening is the big Izzie typing and pottering session and that's when they decide to close. But there is the alternative of the Abacus labs where I am right now. But Iz hates them. Nasty places. Firstly -you need to swipe your ID card every time you come and go - through two doors each time compared to none at the usual Izzie lurking grounds. Secondly they run from a different network and as Izzie has no floppies handy or those flash new cigarette lighter USB thingies - need to resort to sending files as emails or the old reliable - private posts in LJ. But that of course is useless for tables and graphs. But what Iz really really hates is there are no toilets and Iz is just dying for a pee. But once I leave this place - could not be bothered coming back again.
But what is annoying the hell out of ickle Iz is the evil auditing assignments. Nasty stinking things. Last week our tutor says that some one else would be taking the class because she would be away in Singapore or something. But she adds - that does not mean that your work won't be collected.
Well - yet again another sunny Thursday afternoon got wasted typing stupid questionses. At least this time got finished by 3pm so had time to potter in Cyberia and have a coffee and catch up with the papers.
Her replacement lecturer was so boring that I used the lecture time to write those silly chapter summaries for Friday - another evil random collection subject.
We then went walking half way across the Min to get to our tutorial only to see the place cordoned off and the fire brigade there. They had been there for 3 hours or so. Classes in those rooms had been cancelled but no one was organized enough to inform the lecturers so that they could tell us where to go instead.
Most amusing - there was supposed to be three auditing tutorials in that building but only one tutor turned up. I guess the other two heard about it earlier and just slinked off into the darkness. So she was very nice and found another room and let all us stragglers join her class.
But that meant of course that our assignments were yet again NOT going to be collected. She gave back hers to the class from the previous week.
So that now leaves us with 8 weeks of question and the probability of collection increasing with every week.
Got back the thingie from Friday's class that I had to rush off in 30 minutes because of wasting all that time on the auditing stuff. Got 6/10 Pretty damn good return on investment for about 90 mins work in all. Worst thing was - took time from that to do the other stuff that I got zilch marks for because once again it never got collected.
Class finished at 9pm on Thursday and we decided to do some of the group assignment. The woman Izzie is working with likes to work in the Abacus lab because it is right next to the bus stops. I'd suggested last week that we each come up with our own list of ten dodgiest things about Big Chef Ltd which is the imaginary company for this case study assignment.
She had pages and pages of stuff - all typed - she even types up her notes for subjects too! Iz felt totally inadequate - thinking of my one page of big red squiggles that certainly were not typed. But Iz kept asking what 10 risk factors she had come up with - wanted to see how we compared but she never would answer that question.
But what is most worrying - I say - before we go any further - the best thing to do is decide what each of us has to have done for next week so we can compare results. "Oh I don't work that way" she says.
Oh no..here we go again thinks Iz. So we ended up farting around in the lab until 11.30 pm (Yesss..Izzie's precious online pottering time) and have bugger all to show for it. Iz still does not know what she thinks the biggest risks are and she didn't seem interested in the Izzie opinion on the matter.
March 31 is the last day this semester to dump subjects and Iz gets the impression that she may want out. We have already lost several people from our tutorial and one of them was in the Izzie group for the assignment. There is supposed to be 3-4 people per group and so far we are down to two.
Just one lecture was enough last term to scare off Iz. But it's got to be done some time and Iz knows a good teacher when she sees one and have definitely hit the jackpot with this one.
The ma told Iz that she is going out Saturday evening. So Iz will be lurking here at the Min instead. So no chats with cats this week:(
Vernon was whingeing about Iz being up so late last Saturday. What's it to him? He just cannot bear the thought that some one some where could possibly be enjoying themselves.
But there is one consolation - got 2 of the four nasty questionses finished already and may just manage this week to be munching sushi on Thursday instead of stuck in front of a keyboard typing assignments that will never be collected.
Was so peeved that I didn't even bother going to the Izzie Friday morning gossip group. But it's not like I did anything instead. Got up at 10am instead of 5.30 am and basically wasted the time snoozing that was theoretically supposed to be spent finishing Friday's questions. Lucky she didnt' decide to be utterly evil and collect two weeks in a row.
All it did was make poor Iz confused and even more irritable. Not a good idea upsetting routines and rituals for silly reasons.
So now it's time to slink off to the lair and have a glass of red with my most precioussss and ever so faithful pet rat Wormtail!
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no subject
Date: 2004-03-26 07:59 am (UTC)So did you ever do Chinua Achebe?
no subject
Date: 2004-03-26 07:52 pm (UTC)But last week had to return a most fascinating book to the library called "The Battle for God" by Karen Armstrong. It was about Christian, Islamic and Jewish fundamentalism and unlike all those history books that put everything in pigeon holes - she looked at the developments in each religion in parallel. What Iz did read - especially the bits at the beginning where she talks about two ways of viewing the world which she calls 'mythos' and 'logos' and the inevitable disaster that happens when folks try to apply scientific logic and literalism to scriptures or vice versa - it sure was most fascinating and Iz had herself a pity party giving it back. But then again I can't complain. Had three whole goblin free months and should have used those to find and read interesting books
But I guess it's like when an exam approaches and you get an irresistable urge to tidy up the sock drawers and dust the fridge condenser coils or chase doxies from the curtain.
Iz thinks the original title "Things fall apart" came from a W B Yeats poem and continues 'The centre cannot hold'
Pity Iz knows no more than that. It's a great line to describe a sense of confusion and rapid descent into anarchy - or even I guess - a nervous breakdown.